16.13 Los Angeles and New York. The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes separate consumer price indexes for major metropolitan areas in addition to the national CPI. The CPI (1982–84 = 100) in July 2015 was 247.1 in Los Angeles and 261.2 in New York.
(a) These numbers tell us that prices rose faster in New York than in Los Angeles between the base period and July 2015. Explain how we know this.
(b) These numbers do not tell us that prices in July 2015 were higher in New York than in Los Angeles. Explain why.